Dear Journal, Today Kestra Died
by Asali Nyuki
Summary: Kestra Troi dies...and someone writes the whole incident out. Read to find out who...


Journal- Star Date XXXXX- USS Enterprise 

Dear Journal: 

Kestra struggled into her clothes very early that morning, and she gazed into the mirror. She smiled at herself like she did every morning, and she wandered over to the small crib next to her own bed. Inside of the crib was a tiny baby, and Kestra cooed at it. 

"Little Deanna," Kestra said in a high voice. She smiled as the baby moved a little, and through the bars she could see her sister's black curly hair. Suddenly, Kestra felt a wet nose against her young leg. She looked down, and she smiled at her little dog. 

"Good morning Mister Yuixe!" She called to the small furry dog. The dog jumped up onto its hind legs, and Kestra bent down to give her best friend a kiss. 

Lwaxana Troi heard some light noise in her daughter's room, and she stirred. Her husband, Ian, laid next to her. Lwaxana almost signaled him to check on the girls, but she knew that it would be futile to try to wake up Ian. She herself struggled up, slipped into a robe, and strided into the airy room that Kestra and Baby Deanna shared. The morning sun hit the walls of the room, and Lwaxana smiled when she saw Kestra bouncing happily with her little dog. 

"Kestra, what have I told you about waking up so early?" Lwaxana laughed. Lwaxana wandered over to the crib and bent down to pick the young child up. Little Deanna enthused, but remained sound asleep. Lwaxana patted the child's back, and then laid her back down. 

Kestra was still on the ground, playing with the curly-haired dog. She laughed when the dog jumped up into her lap, and she fell back. 

Lwaxana turned and looked at her, "Kestra." 

Kestra arose, and Lwaxana motioned for her to come to her dresser. Kestra was still as Lwaxana placed the headband like device in her hair, and then she patted her eldest daughter on the head. Today was a busy day. 

Kestra turned and smiled toothily. "Mommy, you know Yuixe is going to have curly hair- just like Baby Deanna?" 

Lwaxana smiled. She thought back of when she was 6, and her heart sank. She had never had a brother; much less a sister, and she smiled down at Kestra. "Yes, I think so." 

Kestra was proud of her statement, and when Lwaxana was finished helping her fully dress, Kestra bounded into the kitchen. Lwaxana yawned, and she gave her daughter some breakfast. 

Deanna began crying, and Ian woke up. Ian tossed, and he arose. He stepped into Deanna's room, and he heard Lwaxana and Kestra speaking to each other. He smiled warmly, and he gently calmed the baby back to sanity. Deanna was in a lively mood, and he took her downstairs to the kitchen. Ian set her down in the high chair, and Lwaxana kissed him on the cheek lovingly. 

"Mmmm" Ian said. He tried to wake himself up, and his wife's kiss helped him greatly. He realized that nothing on him was fixed, and his hair stuck up like he had just eaten uttaberries. 

Lwaxana smiled, and she set down the utensils to eat with Kestra. She fed Deanna in between her every bite, and Kestra hugged her father right after she had finished eating. 

"Daddy, mommy and me and Yuixe and Deanna are going to go and pick some flowers and walk the doggie. Are you going to come?" Kestra said with a hopeful look in her eyes. 

Ian smiled, and he thought for a moment. He knew that today was his day off, but he liked to build suspense. "Sure, honey, I'm going. Just give mommy and me some time to get ready" 

Kestra didn't let him finish. She jumped up and down and she raced up the stairs to find the best collar for Yuixe to wear. Mommy had always told her to keep them together, but she liked to play with them and Deanna when mommy wasn't looking. 

Lwaxana and Ian changed in their rooms, and when they came out fully dressed, Kestra already stood outside. She had an innocent grin on her face, and she held Yuixe. Yuixe was squirming the child's arms, and she finally dropped the dog down. 

"Mommy, I need some help to put Yuixe's collar onhe won't be still for me," Kestra said. 

Lwaxana walked out down the hall, and Ian followed. Lwaxana responded, "Yes dear, when we go outside." 

Deanna had been sitting in a round intertube-like cushion, and Lwaxana carried it outside. Ian sat down next to it on the porch, and he watched his daughter, who was gurgling contently. Kestra gave her hurried mother the small collar, and the dog was already outside. 

Kestra ran outside to get the dog, and Lwaxana stopped her. "Honey, stay close. Let me get his collar on first" 

Kestra ran after Yuixe, not really listening. She grabbed her dog, and she proudly carried it back to Lwaxana. Ian watched Deanna falling asleep, and Lwaxana put a finger to her lip. 

"Kestra, Deanna is sleeping. Try to be quiet a little," Lwaxana said in a hushed tone. Deanna had a hard night, with the earache and all, and Kestra has somehow slept through the whole incident of Deanna's wailing. 

Kestra waited impatiently, and she let Yuixe go to Lwaxana to be leashed. She accidentally flopped to the ground, and landed within a few feet of Deanna's little cushion. 

"Waaaaaa!" Baby Deanna awoke with a wail. Ian was too late to grab to Deanna to comfort her, but Lwaxana did the job for him. Yuixe grabbed loose from Lwaxana, and Kestra cried out as he bounded into the woods barking. 

"Kestra! Look what you have done" Lwaxana said in a rushed tone. She picked up Baby Deanna, and she stroked her. 

Ian grunted, "Kestra, it's okay. Are you okay?" 

Kestra nodded, but most of her attention was in the direction of her disappearing dog. She arose quickly, and with a single breath, she said, "Mommy, I have to go get Yuixe." 

Lwaxana looked, and she laid the calmer Deanna into the cushion. "Kestra, don't go too far. He'll come back." 

Kestra ran off with her mommy's words, and she bolted through the trees. She heard her dog's barking, and she realized that the dog was out of her allowed territory. She stopped momentarily, and she looked back. Should she stop? Or should she keep going? She decided to keep going. After all, what could happen? 

Kestra ran only a little farther, and she soon came to the lake, which looked like a big mirror. Kestra saw her dog resting on the ground, and she looked around. She had never been near this lake before, and she loved the clearing that was all around it. Rocks lined the bed of the lake, and Kestra screamed in surprised and laughter. 

"Oh Yuixe! We have never been here before!" Kestra said. She walked carefully out onto the rocks, and she balanced herself on the edge of the shoreline. 

Yuixe whined, and the dog arose. He followed Kestra out a little, and then he stopped out of fear. 

Kestra looked back at her pet, and she motioned for her dog to join her on the very edge. She jumped out further, and she was now on the single large rock in the actual lake. She instantly forgot everything that she had been taught, and she laughed. The water looked so wonderful and clear! 

"Come on Yuixe! It's okay! It's okay" Kestra said. 

Right before she had a chance to finish, her foot suddenly lost balance. She gulped air in surprise, and she soon found herself in the coldest of waters. She opened her eyes, and the morning sun beamed down onto the lake. 

"Yuixe!" Kestra yelled from the lake. She splashed widely, and she managed to grab onto the rock. Yuixe backed away in fear and uncertainty, merely whining. 

"Mommy! Daddy!" Kestra yelled from the slippery rock side. It was so cold, and her small hands soon gave out. She floated away from the rock, and she could no longer feel the sinking bottom of the lake against her feet. She went under once, and she looked up into the cloudy waters. It's all she could see was the sun beaming down in the water. It had seemed so clear from the top, but now years of settled dirt gathered around the tiny-framed body. 

Kestra came up once more, gasping and coughing horribly. She tried in vain to swim, but she didn't know how. Nothing from within her gave her an instinct, and she soon slipped under the waters. She looked around her, and everything was a musty green. For a strange moment, she pondered in the waters, and she thought about how deep they actually were. Her vision faded to black, and her small lungs filled up with the dirty water. She felt a strange stinging sensation, and then there was no more. Kestra died 

Yuixe ran back to his home in a barking and panicking manner. He couldn't tell what was wrong, but a strange feeling and urge came to him. 

Lwaxana stopped hold Deanna, and she suddenly screamed. She felt an awful feeling from the pit of her soul, and she knew. She hugged Deanna tight, and she rose. Ian wasn't sure what was wrong at first, but when he felt the pain from Lwaxana, his eyes widened. He looked at Yuixe coming back from the woods barking, and he felt tears welling up in his eyes. 

"Kestra! NO!" He yelled at the top of his lungs. Then, he wrapped himself around Lwaxana and cried for a brief instant. Then, he let Lwaxana and Deanna fall to the ground. Lwaxana was in trauma, and she didn't even notice Ian's presence. Ian bounded off into the woods, and he bounded swiftly and quickly. 

"KestraKestraKestra" he kept repeating as he ran. He came to the lake, and he collapsed. He opened his eyes, and a strong current was in the water. Along the shoreline was a small twisted figure, limp and white. 

"Kestra!" Ian shouted at the body. He raced down onto the shoreline, and he splashed into the water to the figure. He took his daughter into his strong arms, and a sound behind him made him turn. He swirled around with Kestra in his arms, and Lwaxana was standing behind him holding Deanna. When she saw Kestra, she fell on her knees in tears. Ian fell next to her, and the young baby Deanna clung to Lwaxana. 

Ian gently laid his angel on the ground in front of Lwaxana, and Lwaxana fell onto her daughter with Deanna in her arms. Kestra was an awful white, and she had a bluish tint to her. Ian could barely look at his own daughter like that, and he summoned for help on the small pin he held near his pocket. 

Ian shouted angrily after summoned help, but then he also fell onto Kestra. The officials came soon, and they gently took the body. Kestra was buried, and she was honored for years to come silently. 

Ian and Lwaxana cried about Kestra for many years later, but I, Baby Deanna would never find the truth until it ate my own mother alive. I am now a fully-grown adult, and I currently hold counseling job on the Enterprise. The reason why I tell this story is to be a release, and to finally come to terms with my older sister: Kestra. May your soul rest in peace. And now, as I look back at the wonderful relationship my parents had, I look to the picture of Will I have on my desk. And I smile, and I whisper, "Imzadi," knowing that he will always be there for me as my parents were there for each other 

End Journal, Deanna Troi 


End file.
